Arthur Croft commits suicide after sending a special capsule into space. Jasper Froch learns how to control the phenomenon of synchronicity. In Sangrine, Florida, a UFO crashes, which results in people beginning to act strange, and many of them turn out to be geniuses. Murderers become so clever, they become more dangerous than ever. Froch soon learns the depth of the mystery behind the UFO, Arthur Croft and his own role in the happenings.

In HIM: After the UFO Crash, there is a lot of scientific background. The real-life science aspects help wield the story together in order to bring the fiction to existence. The information can be overwhelming at times, which can make for a slower pace than need be. As we progress through the characters’ lives, the events they are going through can appear unimportant to the story’s objective, which aides in the sluggish pace. However, as we near the end, everything begins to make even more sense, and you will be blown away by the outcome.

The dialogue can often be tremendously long and tedious. I have caught myself skimming over it, then ended up going back to reread in case I missed something. Sometimes I was confused at whether the character was thinking, speaking, or if it was the narrator.

HIM: After the UFO Crash is not for everyone, and definitely is not your normal leisure, easy-to-read sci-fi novel. You’ll want to be patient, take your time, and focus on each scene, every character. By the time you’ve finished, you’ll be glad you did. It was very cleverly written, putting aside quite a few repetitions in the dialogue and narrative. The images Koos Verkaik gives us of the people and places are vivid, and the tale would make an excellent mini-series.

If you enjoy science fiction, the prospect of UFOs, and a story that throws twists and turns around every corner, then I recommend HIM.

Overall Rate: 4 out of 5 stars

Biography

Koos Verkaik was born in Holland, near Rotterdam. Worked as a copywriter. His first comics (three pages each week) were published in the magazine Sjors when he was 16 years of age; he wrote his first novel (SF) in a weekend at the age of 18 and it was published by Civo The Hague.

He wrote hundreds of comic scripts and published over 60 different books, both children’s books and urban fantasy novels.